Chapter 192

It must be said, after Kaito's detailed explanation, they'd all finally understood what Ōnoki was really up to.

But they couldn't deny, this Ōnoki was truly cunning and seasoned. In such a passive situation, he could still see opportunities and seize them quickly.

With such ability and sharpness, one could only say he truly lived up to his title as the Third Tsuchikage. The level of trouble this guy could cause was really beyond anyone's imagination!

"Yet... Ōnoki's plans were so quickly figured out by Kaito. This young man is really something," Jiraiya couldn't help but think as he fixed his gaze on Kaito.

If it had been Nara Shikaku who'd come up with this, it wouldn't have surprised him. After all, Shikaku naturally had such abilities; thinking of these things was not at all unexpected.

Tsunade was the same. Even if Tsunade seemed outwardly careless and clumsy, Jiraiya remembered the words Kaito once said. Tsunade had received elite education from the Senju Clan; her talents were not something ordinary people could match.

But what about Kaito?

He had no advantage in terms of age, and he'd not received any elite education in Uchiha either. It was well-known that he didn't get along with the Uchiha Clan back then.

Jiraiya felt that if it hadn't been for his own teacher taking action against this clan, and Kaito discovering it, thus feeling compelled to intervene, Kaito might not have risen to his current influential position. The young man might have remained a joyful task-focused ninja.

It could only be said that fate toys with people, and in the end, Jiraiya became the one to pay the price for his teacher's actions.

However, these were inevitable matters. What Jiraiya was more focused on was Kaito himself. Without having received such education, he could still grasp Ōnoki's inner thoughts so clearly and quickly.

This was truly an unimaginable thing, and Jiraiya also noticed that Kaito had done too many unimaginable things. The things Kaito did were so easily overlooked, yet this guy wasn't even old enough to drink!

So young, yet already achieving so much, with such thinking ability, and also overwhelmingly powerful — what kind of monster is this?

"So, you want to use Ōnoki's declaration of war against Konoha as a tool to divert attention and conflict?"

Just as Jiraiya was lost in thought and sighing inwardly, Tsunade suddenly spoke.

"No, your thoughts aren't that simple. To divert attention and conflict, one big event would be enough. Ninja reform and medical reform, along with the Daimyo incident as a support, are already more than sufficient. You can't possibly really want to have a confrontation with Iwagakure, can you?"

Tsunade's words snapped Jiraiya back to reality. His eyes quickly locked onto Kaito.

Not just him, everyone's gaze was fixed on Kaito. But unlike Jiraiya's slightly tense demeanor, the others were lost in thought.

"Perhaps there will be a confrontation, perhaps not. But isn't this also an opportunity for Konoha to show its stance?"

Kaito seemed not the least bit concerned. He nodded straightforwardly, making his position clear.

Then he began to tap lightly on the table while calmly speaking.

"You may think my idea is somewhat risky, given Konoha's current unstable situation. But have any of you considered the current morale within Konoha? Especially after years ago, when the Third Hokage chose to compromise under the threat from Kumogakure. Just how heavy an impact did that have on our internal morale?

And furthermore, what sort of negative implications has that compromise brought us on the grand scale of the ninja world?"

Kaito's words made Hyuga Hiashi's facial expression slightly change, as it was their Hyuga clan that suffered the most due to that forced compromise.

However, Hiashi remained relatively calm. Even though this incident was a lifetime pain for him, he was not one to shy away from facing it. And his personal capabilities were not weak; after a little thought, he understood what Kaito was trying to say.

"Clan leader Kaito, what you mean is, this time Iwagakure is somewhat imitating what Kumogakure did years ago. While we can't rule out that a real fight might happen, if we back down it might again deliver a devastating blow to Konoha's morale and our image in the ninja world.

So, we need to overturn everything that Sarutobi Hiruzen did back then, giving the citizens of Konoha a brand new image, thereby boosting Konoha's morale."

"And also, to turn around our image in the ninja world?"

"Exactly, that's what I mean."

Kaito smiled and nodded at Hyuga Hiashi, then continued to speak.

"Ōnoki acts in his own interest and also for the benefit of Iwagakure when he confronts us. But why can't we act based on our own considerations in responding to this?

Especially since the Third Hokage's actions led to a sharp decline in Konoha's image throughout the ninja world. The loss of mission quotas can be quantified, but the more terrifying, more deplorable loss is that intangible one—giving people the soft image that Konoha is not reliable.

Now the opportunity is right in front of us. If we don't seize it, it would be a terrible mistake."

At this point, Kaito stood up and continued very seriously.

"Moreover, our ninja and medical reforms involve the welfare and assistance for deceased ninjas and those after the war. If war really does break out, we can use this to prove to all Konoha ninjas that we are not joking around.

While it's cruel to do so, I can't think of any other way to quickly make everyone believe in us."

"Still, war is risky; once it starts, it's uncontrollable. Have you thought about the extent of the damage it could cause?"

Jiraiya was angered by Kaito's words. He personally loathed war. Even though he knew Kaito had a point, he couldn't help but retort.

"Then, let's limit the conflict to a low-intensity scope."

Kaito looked seriously at Jiraiya and calmly gave his answer.

"Hokage-sama, do you remember what I told you about peace? The Land of Grass is a testing ground where we can validate our thoughts. And, Hokage-sama, a great person once said: seek peace through struggle, and peace exists; seek peace through compromise, and peace perishes.

Peace is always fought for, never acquired through compromise or negotiation."

On the road back to Konoha from the capital of the Land of Fire, Shisui and his companions proceeded with caution at a slow pace.

In their midst was a carriage, and surrounding the carriage was a group of people in ornate clothes, silently following along.

Clearly, the individual inside the carriage held a position of lofty status.

Behind the carriage, three ninjas and a monk followed in silence. These four were members of the Daimyō's Twelve Guardian Ninja.

So, it was obvious that the person within the carriage was none other than the Daimyō of the Land of Fire!

However, the atmosphere among the group seemed somewhat heavy, even Shisui was notably reticent.

The reason was quite straightforward—they had made a big mess of things!

Yes, in their eyes, they had indeed escalated the situation, or at least that's what everyone apart from Shisui believed and how they perceived it.

Because, quite unintentionally, they had ended up killing the Daimyō!

The battle with the Daimyō's ninja had not been surprising; it was what they had planned to do all along.

The Daimyō's incredible belief that ordinary people could rule over ninjas was largely due to the extreme ideas instilled in him by these ninjas.

Such troublemakers had to be eliminated. How could they possibly let them live?

The battle this time left little room for doubt. While the opponents were not weak and had good coordination, they were facing the talented elite members of major clans, after all.

Especially with Shisui, a formidable character, involved, the battle was far from difficult.

The Ino-Shika-Chō trio were dealing with a four-man squad that used Raiton. Even though the opponents were not weak and their coordination was good, they were restricted within the palace.

In contrast, the Ino-Shika-Chō trio had no such constraints. That they hadn't dealt killing blows already showed their strict adherence to the mission requirements.

Aburame, Hyūga, and Inuzuka were responsible for dealing with those who had even worse coordination, as well as facing off against that monk, Jiriku.

For them, this was not particularly stressful; the monk was a bit troublesome, but the others were nothing special.

Shisui only had to deal with one person, who did have some abilities, but even so, he was hardly a match against Shisui's onslaught.

Particularly because Shisui never intended to hold back; his near full-force fighting was something that man couldn't cope with.

One could say that the outcome of this battle held no suspense at all, and the Daimyō who had been observing it all was truly dumbstruck.

He never dreamt that the gap between his own guardian ninjas and those from Konoha could be so immense! 

This wasn't a matter of tit for tat; this was sheer slaughter.

"Lord Daimyō, you've made an erroneous choice."

Only after Shisui and his team had either directly killed or thoroughly defeated and controlled all of the guardian ninjas, did he turn his indifferent gaze toward the Daimyō.

At that moment, his eyes quietly transformed into a Mangekyō Sharingan, one of his eyes subtly rotating.

"Given your poor choices, I believe it's necessary for Lord Daimyō to make a trip back to Konoha with us. 

Some matters require your personal explanation to the Hokage, and some issues need to be discussed at length with him."

Shisui's words were impeccable, part of the original plan, but crucially, at this moment, he chose to act according to Kaito's instructions.

His Mangekyō was secretly emitting an eerie power. Under this influence, the Daimyō inexplicably felt an overwhelming sense of dread that made him tremble.

At that moment, his heart rate suddenly accelerated, his blood flow spiked rapidly, and his blood pressure continuously rose.

Abruptly, the Daimyō felt as if he was lacking oxygen, yet he couldn't control his rapidly pounding heart.

Gradually, his face turned flushed, and his heart began to ache.

The fast-flowing blood coursed through his heart like a deluge, and when this pressure reached a certain threshold, the Daimyō suddenly clutched his chest.

His complexion turned ashen instantly, and in the next moment, he collapsed on the ground, clutching his left chest.

Unsurprisingly, his cardiac muscle had torn, and his heart should be hemorrhaging.

This method was imparted to Shisui by Kaito, and as a member of the Anbu, Shisui's understanding of human anatomy was no less than that of the Hyūga clan.

Though genuinely curious, Shisui wondered where Kaito got so many of these ruthless techniques that left no trace.

And such a manner of death involuntarily reminded him of incidents in the Konoha prison. However, this thought was but a fleeting one, as he had no interest in delving deeper.

Quickly deactivating his Mangekyō, Shisui moved beside the Daimyō to begin his inspection.

//

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